We got ALOT of questions when we were getting ready to go to El Paso like WHY would you go there? Are you visiting family? What is there to do?
Well, you would be surprised to know that this little gem of a city is a great basecamp for a weekend (or more!) of adventure. We are calling it a hidden gem!
Viator Excursions and Experiences
El Paso is amazing Southwest hub for exploration of three area national parks (Guadalupe National Park is located on the way to Carlsbad Caverns, we didn’t stop but it is a great place to visit as well!) as well as a border crossing into Juarez, Mexico! It is a quick flight from Denver, CO and is also on Mountain time (so no need to adjust!).
We went on a Friday afternoon – Monday morning trip in March. We HIGHLY reccomend March as a perfect time of year because temperatures in all the areas we visited were perfect. The first weekend of March is great because it usually beats all of the spring break travel crowds as well.
- Carlsbad Caverns National Park is about a 2.5 hour drive from El Paso in New Mexico. You will need reservations for this park but it is AMAZING to explore this cave of wonder. We reccomend taking a ranger tour as well! We spent about 6 hours exploring. You will want to get started early to make the drive, and at some point on your drive you will switch to Central time…but have no fear, it will switch back before you arrive! The cave started emptying out in the afternoon since the park closes at 3 PM so again, take your time when you explore! If you have an America the Beautiful pass, admission is free and you just have to pay for the ranger tour.
- White Sands National Park is about a two hour drive to Almagordo, New Mexico and we went for the afternoon and sunset in the park. The visitors center sells sand “sleds” that you can purchase for $20 and between sledding and hiking, it was a fantastic way to spend an afternoon among the dunes. If you have an America the Beautiful pass, admission is free!
- Border Crossing at Juarex, Mexico. We WALKED across the border and spent the afternoon walking around and eating amazing food in Mexico! We stopped at the Kentucky Bar (claim to fame is the invention of the margarita!) and some other local eateries. It was a smooth process to walk, it costs $1 US per person to cross the bridge there and back and if you have Global Entry, the customs process to get back in the US is a breeze (you can skip the line!). Each crossing took about 10 minutes (compared to hours in a car). Once you are over the border, you can Uber for cheap to get around if you don’t want to walk. There is parking on the El Paso side for $4/day in a lot off of Santa Fe street. We felt very safe the entire time and everyone was welcoming and helpful.
We stayed at a Springhill Suites by Marriott near the airport, it was a central location that was also easy for our really early flight home on Monday morning. Rooms are all suites so there is some extra space and every gets free breakfast! We rented a car through Avis and thought the process was efficient for both pick-up and drop-off! El Paso Airport is also very easy to navigate, lines for TSA are short (especially with pre-check/global entry) so we only got to the airport about an hour before our 5 AM flight home.
Overall, this is a great, hidden destination that will allow you to explore the culture and outdoor gems of the surrounding areas! We highly reccomend adding El Paso to your weekend trip list!
MC Exploring 